1 Kings 1
1 Now King David was old and advanced in years; and they covered him with clothes, but he couldn’t keep warm.
When King David was very old [IDM, DOU], even though his servants put many blankets on top of him, he was unable to become warm.
2 Therefore his servants said to him, “Let a young virgin be sought for my lord the king. Let her stand before the king, and cherish him; and let her lie in your bosom, that my lord the king may keep warm.”
So they said to him, “Your Majesty, allow us to search for a young virgin who can stay with you and take care of you. She can sleep close to you and enable you to become warm.”
3 So they sought for a beautiful young lady throughout all the borders of Israel, and found Abishag the Shunammite, and brought her to the king.
[The king gave them permission, ] so they searched throughout Israel for a beautiful young woman. They found a woman named Abishag, from Shunem [town], and brought her to the king.
4 The young lady was very beautiful; and she cherished the king, and served him; but the king didn’t know her intimately.
She was [truly] very beautiful. She took care of [DOU] the king, but the king did not have sexual relations with her.
5 Then Adonijah the son of Haggith exalted himself, saying, “I will be king.” Then he prepared him chariots and horsemen, and fifty men to run before him.
[After Absalom died], David’s oldest surviving son was Adonijah, whose mother was Haggith. He was a very handsome/good-looking man. But David had never rebuked him about anything he did. [After Absalom died, Adonijah thought that he would become king]. So he started to boast, saying “I will become king [now].” Then he provided for himself some chariots, and men to drive them, and horses [to pull them], and 50 men to run [as his bodyguards] in front of those chariots [wherever he went].
6 His father had not displeased him at any time in saying, “Why have you done so?” and he was also a very handsome man; and he was born after Absalom.
7 He conferred with Joab the son of Zeruiah and with Abiathar the priest; and they followed Adonijah and helped him.
One day he conferred with Joab, [David’s army commander], and Abiathar the priest, and they promised/agreed to help/support Adonijah.
8 But Zadok the priest, Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, Nathan the prophet, Shimei, Rei, and the mighty men who belonged to David, were not with Adonijah.
But Zadok, who was also a priest, Benaiah [who had supervised David’s bodyguards], Nathan the prophet, Shimei and Rei, and David’s most capable soldiers refused to help/support Adonijah.
9 Adonijah killed sheep, cattle, and fatlings by the stone of Zoheleth, which is beside En Rogel; and he called all his brothers, the king’s sons, and all the men of Judah, the king’s servants;
One day Adonijah went to Snake Rock near En-Rogel [Spring, which is near Jerusalem], to sacrifice some sheep and oxen and fattened cattle. He invited most of his brothers, King David’s other sons, to come. He also invited all of the king’s officials from Judah to come to the celebration.
10 but he didn’t call Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah, and the mighty men, and Solomon his brother.
But he did not invite Nathan or Benaiah or the king’s most capable soldiers or his [younger/half]-brother Solomon.
11 Then Nathan spoke to Bathsheba the mother of Solomon, saying, “Haven’t you heard that Adonijah the son of Haggith reigns, and David our lord doesn’t know it?
Nathan [found out what they were doing, so he went to] Solomon’s mother Bathsheba [and] asked her, “Have you not heard that Haggith’s son Adonijah is declared himself to be the king? And King David does not know about it!
12 Now therefore come, please let me give you counsel, that you may save your own life and your son Solomon’s life.
So if you want to save yourself and your son Solomon from being killed, allow me to tell you what you should do.
13 Go in to King David, and tell him, ‘Didn’t you, my lord the king, swear to your servant, saying, “Assuredly Solomon your son shall reign after me, and he shall sit on my throne”? Why then does Adonijah reign?’
Go immediately to King David. Say to him, ‘Your Majesty, you solemnly promised me [RHQ] that my son Solomon would become the king after you [die], and that he would sit on your throne [and rule]. So why is it that Adonijah [has said that he] is now the king?’
14 Behold, while you are still talking there with the king, I will also come in after you and confirm your words.”
Then, while you are still talking to the king, I will come in and tell him that what you are saying to him [about Adonijah] is true.”
15 Bathsheba went in to the king in his room. The king was very old; and Abishag the Shunammite was serving the king.
So Bathsheba went to see the king in his bedroom. He was very old, and Abishag was taking care of him.
16 Bathsheba bowed and showed respect to the king. The king said, “What would you like?”
Bathsheba bowed very low in front of the king, and the king asked her, “What do you want?”
17 She said to him, “My lord, you swore by Yahweh your God to your servant, ‘Assuredly Solomon your son shall reign after me, and he shall sit on my throne.’
She replied, “Your Majesty, you solemnly promised me, knowing that Yahweh our God [was listening] [IDM], that my son Solomon would become king after you [die], and that he would sit on your throne [and rule].
18 Now, behold, Adonijah reigns; and you, my lord the king, don’t know it.
But now, believe it or not, Adonijah has become king, and you do not know anything about it.
19 He has slain cattle and fatlings and sheep in abundance, and has called all the sons of the king, Abiathar the priest, and Joab the captain of the army; but he hasn’t called Solomon your servant.
He has sacrificed a lot of oxen and fattened cattle and sheep, and he has invited all of your other sons to the celebration. He has also invited Abiathar the priest and Joab the commander of your army, but he did not invite your son Solomon.
20 You, my lord the king, the eyes of all Israel are on you, that you should tell them who will sit on the throne of my lord the king after him.
Your Majesty, all the people [SYN] of Israel are expecting you to tell them who is the one who will become king after you are no longer the king.
21 Otherwise it will happen, when my lord the king sleeps with his fathers, that I and my son Solomon will be considered criminals.”
If you do not do that, what will happen is that after you die [EUP] people will consider that my son Solomon and I are rebelling, [and they will execute us because we did not help Adonijah to become king].”
22 Behold, while she was still talking with the king, Nathan the prophet came in.
While she was still talking to the king, Nathan came [to the palace].
23 They told the king, saying, “Behold, Nathan the prophet!” When he had come in before the king, he bowed himself before the king with his face to the ground.
The king’s servants/advisors told David, “Nathan the prophet has come.” So [Bathsheba left, and] Nathan went into where the king was and knelt down, with his face on the ground.
24 Nathan said, “My lord, King, have you said, ‘Adonijah shall reign after me, and he shall sit on my throne’?
Then Nathan said, “Your Majesty, have you declared that Adonijah will become king after you are no longer the king?
25 For he has gone down today, and has slain cattle, fatlings, and sheep in abundance, and has called all the king’s sons, the captains of the army, and Abiathar the priest. Behold, they are eating and drinking before him, and saying, ‘Long live King Adonijah!’
[I say that] because today he has gone down [to En-Rogel Spring] and has sacrificed a lot of oxen, fattened cattle, and sheep. And he has invited all of your other sons, Joab the army commander, and Abiathar the priest. They are all eating and drinking with him and saying ‘We hope/desire that King Adonijah will live a long time!’
26 But he hasn’t called me, even me your servant, Zadok the priest, Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and your servant Solomon.
But he did not invite me or Zadok the priest or Benaiah or Solomon.
27 Was this thing done by my lord the king, and you haven’t shown to your servants who should sit on the throne of my lord the king after him?”
Did you, as the king, say that they should do this without telling your other officials who you want to become king [MTY] after you are no longer the king?”
28 Then King David answered, “Call Bathsheba in to me.” She came into the king’s presence and stood before the king.
Then [after Nathan left the room, ] King David said [to one of his servants], “Tell Bathsheba to come in here again.” So [he went and told her, and] she came in and stood in front of the king.
29 The king vowed and said, “As Yahweh lives, who has redeemed my soul out of all adversity,
Then the king said, “Yahweh has rescued me from all my troubles. I promised you, with Yahweh the God whom we Israelis [worship] listening, that your son Solomon would be king after I am no longer the king. Today, as surely as Yahweh lives, [I solemnly declare that] I will do what I promised.”
30 most certainly as I swore to you by Yahweh, the God of Israel, saying, ‘Assuredly Solomon your son shall reign after me, and he shall sit on my throne in my place;’ I will most certainly do this today.”
31 Then Bathsheba bowed with her face to the earth and showed respect to the king, and said, “Let my lord King David live forever!”
Bathsheba knelt down with her face on the ground and said, “Your Majesty, I hope/desire that you will live for many more years [HYP]!”
32 King David said, “Call to me Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada.” They came before the king.
Then King David said, “Summon Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah.” [So someone went and summoned them.] When they came in,
33 The king said to them, “Take with you the servants of your lord, and cause Solomon my son to ride on my own mule, and bring him down to Gihon.
he said to them, “Put my son Solomon on my mule. Take him with my officials down to Gihon [Spring].
34 Let Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet anoint him there king over Israel. Blow the trumpet, and say, ‘Long live King Solomon!’
There, you two, Zadok and Nathan, should anoint him, [with olive oil to appoint him to be] the king of Israel. Then you must blow trumpets, and [all the people there must] shout, ‘We hope/desire that King Solomon will live for many years!’
35 Then come up after him, and he shall come and sit on my throne; for he shall be king in my place. I have appointed him to be prince over Israel and over Judah.”
Then follow him back here, and he will come and sit on my throne. He will then become king instead of me. I have appointed him to be the ruler of [all the people of] Israel and of Judah.”
36 Benaiah the son of Jehoiada answered the king, and said, “Amen. May Yahweh, the God of my lord the king, say so.
Benaiah replied, “We will do that! We hope/wish that Yahweh, who is your God [and our God], will cause it to happen!
37 As Yahweh has been with my lord the king, even so may he be with Solomon, and make his throne greater than the throne of my lord King David.”
King David, Yahweh has helped you; we hope/wish that he will also help Solomon and enable him to become a greater king than you have been.”
38 So Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites and the Pelethites went down and had Solomon ride on King David’s mule, and brought him to Gihon.
So Zadok, Nathan, Benaiah, and the two groups of men who were the king’s bodyguards went and put Solomon on King David’s mule and escorted him down to Gihon [Spring].
39 Zadok the priest took the horn of oil from the Tent, and anointed Solomon. They blew the trumpet; and all the people said, “Long live King Solomon!”
There Zadok took the container of [olive] oil from the Sacred Tent and (anointed/poured some oil on) Solomon. Then the trumpets were blown, and all the people shouted, “We hope/wish that King Solomon will live for many years!”
40 All the people came up after him, and the people piped with pipes, and rejoiced with great joy, so that the earth shook with their sound.
Then all the people followed him back up [to the city], shouting joyfully and playing flutes. They shouted very loudly, with the result that the ground shook.
41 Adonijah and all the guests who were with him heard it as they had finished eating. When Joab heard the sound of the trumpet, he said, “Why is this noise of the city being in an uproar?”
When Adonijah and all (his guests/the people whom he had invited) were finishing eating at their celebration, they heard the noise. When Joab heard the sound of the trumpets, he asked, “What is causing all that noise in the city?”
42 While he yet spoke, behold, Jonathan the son of Abiathar the priest came; and Adonijah said, “Come in; for you are a worthy man, and bring good news.”
While he was still speaking, Jonathan, the son of Abiathar the priest, arrived. Adonijah said, “Come in! You are a man whom we can trust, so you must be bringing us good news!”
43 Jonathan answered Adonijah, “Most certainly our lord King David has made Solomon king.
Jonathan replied, “No, [I do not have good news]! His Majesty, King David, has caused Solomon to be the king!
44 The king has sent with him Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites and the Pelethites; and they have caused him to ride on the king’s mule.
He sent Zadok, Nathan, Benaiah, and his own group of bodyguards to go with Solomon. They put Solomon on King David’s mule.
45 Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet have anointed him king in Gihon. They have come up from there rejoicing, so that the city rang again. This is the noise that you have heard.
They [went down to] Gihon [Spring], and there Zadok and Nathan anointed him to become the king. Now they have returned from there to the city, shouting joyfully. That is why there is that great/loud noise that you are hearing.
46 Also, Solomon sits on the throne of the kingdom.
So Solomon is now our king [MTY].
47 Moreover the king’s servants came to bless our lord King David, saying, ‘May your God make the name of Solomon better than your name, and make his throne greater than your throne;’ and the king bowed himself on the bed.
Furthermore, the palace officials came to His Majesty, King David, to tell him that they approved of what he had done. They said, ‘We wish/hope that our God will enable Solomon [MTY] to become more famous than you have been and enable him to be a better king than you have been.’ When they said that, the king, lying on his bed, bowed his head to worship [Yahweh].
48 Also thus said the king, ‘Blessed be Yahweh, the God of Israel, who has given one to sit on my throne today, my eyes even seeing it.’”
Then he said, ‘I praise Yahweh, the God whom we Israelis [worship], because he has allowed one of my sons to become the king today, and has permitted me to see it happen.’”
49 All the guests of Adonijah were afraid, and rose up, and each man went his way.
Then all of Adonijah’s guests (trembled/were afraid), so they all immediately got up and left and scattered.
50 Adonijah was afraid because of Solomon; and he arose, and went, and hung onto the horns of the altar.
Adonijah was afraid of what Solomon [would do], so he went [to the Sacred Tent] and grabbed the projections at the corners of the altar, [because he knew that no one would kill him there].
51 Solomon was told, “Behold, Adonijah fears King Solomon; for, behold, he is hanging onto the horns of the altar, saying, ‘Let King Solomon swear to me first that he will not kill his servant with the sword.’”
But someone told Solomon, “Hey/Listen, Adonijah is afraid of you, so he [has gone to the Sacred Tent and] is holding on to the corners of the altar. He is saying, ‘[Before I leave, ] I want King Solomon to solemnly promise that he will not command that I be executed.’”
52 Solomon said, “If he shows himself a worthy man, not a hair of his shall fall to the earth; but if wickedness is found in him, he shall die.”
Solomon replied, “If he proves that he is loyal to me, I will not harm him at all [IDM]. But if he does anything that is wrong, he will be executed.”
53 So King Solomon sent, and they brought him down from the altar. He came and bowed down to King Solomon; and Solomon said to him, “Go to your house.”
So King Solomon sent [some men to Adonijah], and they brought him back from the altar. He came to Solomon and bowed down in front of him. Then Solomon said to him, “Go home.”
